Electro-optical device and electronic apparatus

ABSTRACT

An electro-optical device includes a reflective layer, a light emitting element including a light emitting layer formed between an anode and a cathode, and a driving transistor configured to control a current flowing through the light emitting element. In the same layer as the reflective layer, a relay electrode included in a current path from the driving transistor to the anode is formed with a gap between the relay electrode and the reflective layer. A contact electrode electrically connecting the relay electrode and the anode is formed as a light shielding layer that blocks light entering the gap.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to an electro-optical device and anelectronic apparatus that are effective for reduction of degradations indisplay quality associated with light leakage, for example.

2. Related Art

Various types of electro-optical devices using light emitting elementssuch as organic light emitting diodes (hereinafter referred to as“OLEDs”) have recently been proposed. In the configuration of such anelectro-optical device, typically, pixel circuits including the lightemitting elements mentioned above, transistors, and other components arearranged at positions corresponding to intersections of scanning linesand data lines, and the pixel circuits are provided so as to correspondto pixels of an image to be displayed. A pixel circuit using an OLEDtypically includes a write transistor that determines whether or not adata signal is able to foe input from a data line, a driving transistorthat determines, on the basis of the data signal, the amount of acurrent to be supplied to the OLED, and a storage capacitor that holds adata signal supplied from the data line. Furthermore, there is atechnology using more elements for the purpose of achieving high imagequality (for example, refer to JP-A-2010-20926).

An electro-optical device as mentioned above has a configuration inwhich a driving transistor, a power supply wiring line, an intermediateinsulating film, an OLED element, and the like are formed in multiplelayers, and the source or drain of the driving transistor and the anode51 of the OLED element are connected using relay electrodes and contactholes formed in the layers. Also, a top-emission pixel circuit has aconfiguration in which an optical adjustment layer and an insulatinglayer are formed in layers lower than an OLED element, and a reflectivelayer is formed in a still lower layer. Then, in the same layer as thereflective layer, a relay electrode connected from the source or drainof the driving transistor mentioned above is disposed with an insulatingfilm interposed between the reflective layer and the relay electrode,and this relay electrode is connected to the anode 51 of the OLEDelement. Accordingly, when such a top-emission pixel circuit is seen inplan view, there is a gap between the reflective layer and the relayelectrode, suitable luminance has sometimes not been obtained becausesome of the incident light has leaked into the gap. As a result,luminance unevenness is visually recognized, which leads to a reductionin display quality.

SUMMARY

An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it reducesdegradations in image quality associated with light leakage.

An electro-optical device according to an aspect of the inventionincludes a reflective layer, a light emitting element including a lightemitting layer formed between an anode 51 and a cathode 53, and adriving transistor configured to control a current flowing through thelight emitting element. In the same layer as the reflective layer, arelay electrode included in a current path from the driving transistorto the anode 51 is formed with a gap between the relay electrode and thereflective layer. A contact electrode electrically connecting the relayelectrode and the anode 51 is formed as a light shielding layer thatblocks light entering the gap. An electro-optical device according toanother aspect of the invention includes a plurality of scanning linesand a plurality of data lines intersecting each other, a plurality ofpixel circuits provided at positions corresponding to intersections ofthe scanning lines and the data lines, and a power supply wiring linethat supplies a given potential, the power supply wiring line beingprovided at a position corresponding to each of the plurality of pixelcircuits. The scanning line, the data line, and the power supply wiringline are formed in the same layer or different layers of a plurality oflayers. Each of the plurality of pixel circuits includes a reflectivelayer, a light emitting element including an anode 51, a light emittinglayer formed on the anode 51, and a cathode 53, and a driving transistorconfigured to control a current flowing through the light emittingelement. In the same layer as the reflective layer, a relay electrodeincluded in a signal transmission path to the anode 51 is formed with agap between the relay electrode and the reflective layer. A contactelectrode electrically connecting the relay electrode and the anode 51is formed as a light shielding layer that blocks light entering the gap.

According to the aspects of the invention, the relay electrode formed inthe same layer as the reflective layer and the anode 51 of the lightemitting element are connected by the contact electrode. Also, the relayelectrode is formed with a gap between the relay electrode and thereflective layer. However, the contact electrode is formed as a lightshielding layer covering the gap. Accordingly, light from a lightemitting region of the light emitting element is blocked by this lightshielding layer. This enables light to be prevented from invading apixel circuit formed in a lower layer than the relay electrode. As aresult, a malfunction may be prevented and display quality may beimproved. Moreover, the contact electrode is operated as the lightshielding layer, and therefore a special configuration need not be addedin order to block light invading the gap. This allows the configurationof the electro-optical device to be simplified.

In the electro-optical device described above, it is preferable that thelight shielding layer is formed so as to be located on the optical pathof light that enters from an edge on a side of the relay electrode ofthe light emitting layer toward an edge on a side of the reflectivelayer of the gap. In this case, of light that enters from the edge onthe relay electrode side of the light emitting layer to the anode 51,light that enters at an angle closer to the vertical direction than theoptical path of light that reaches the edge on the reflective layer sideof the gap will not reach the gap. Of light that enters from the edge onthe relay electrode side of the light emitting element to the anode 51,light that enters at an angle closer to the horizontal direction thanthe optical path of light that reaches the edge on the reflective layerside of the gap is blocked by the light shielding layer. Accordingly,this light shielding layer eliminates incidence of light from the lightemitting region of the light emitting element into the gap. Thus, amalfunction is prevented and display with accurate luminance isperformed.

In the electro-optical device described above, it is preferable that thereflective layer is formed of the same conductive material as the relayelectrode, and a given potential is supplied to the reflective layer. Inthis case, since the given potential is supplied to the reflectivelayer, noise will be shielded by the reflective layer. This enables anaccurate current to be supplied to the light emitting element, and thusdisplay quality may be improved.

Note that the invention may be conceptualized as an electro-opticaldevice as well as a method of driving an electro-optical device or anelectronic apparatus including the electro-optical device. Typicalexamples of the electronic apparatus include display devices such as ahead-mounted display (HMD) and an electronic viewfinder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of anelectro-optical device according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of theelectro-optical device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a pixel circuit in the electro-opticaldevice.

FIG. 4 is a timing chart illustrating operations of the electro-opticaldevice.

FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of the pixel circuitin the electro-optical device.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an HMD using theelectro-optical device according to the embodiment or the like.

FIG. 7 illustrates an optical configuration of the HMD.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT

Hereinafter, an exemplary embodiment of the invention will be describedwith reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of anelectro-optical device 10 according to an embodiment of the invention.The electro-optical device 10 is a microdisplay that displays an imagein a head-mounted display (HMD), for example. The electro-optical device10, details of which will be described below, is an organicelectroluminescent (EL) device in which a plurality of pixel circuits,driving circuits for driving the pixel circuits, and other componentsare formed in a silicon substrate, for example. An OLED, which is anexemplary light emitting element, is used in the pixel circuit. Theelectro-optical device 10 is mounted in a frame-shaped case 72 having anopening for a display section. One end of a flexible printed circuit(FPC) substrate 74 is connected to the electro-optical device 10. Acontrol circuit 5 of a semiconductor chip is mounted on the FPCsubstrate 74 using a chip-on-film (COF) technology. The FPC substrate 74is provided with a plurality of terminals 76 so as to be connected to ahigher-level circuit, which is not illustrated. From the higher-levelcircuit, image data is supplied via the plurality of terminals 76 insynchronization with synchronizing signals. The synchronizing signalsinclude vertical synchronizing signals, horizontal synchronizingsignals, and dot clock signals. In the image data, the gray scale levelsof pixels of an image to be displayed are defined in 8 bits, forexample. The control circuit 5 performs both functions of a power supplycircuit and a data signal output circuit of the electro-optical device10. That is, the control circuit 5 supplies various control signals andvarious potentials generated in accordance with the synchronizingsignals to the electro-optical device 10, and also converts digitalimage data to analog data signals and supplies the signals to theelectro-optical device 10.

FIG. 2 illustrates a configuration of the electro-optical device 10according to one embodiment of the invention. As illustrated in thisdrawing, the electro-optical device 10 is broadly divided into ascanning line driving circuit 20, a data line driving circuit 30, and adisplay section 100. In the display section 100, among theaforementioned, pixel circuits 110 corresponding to pixels of an imageto be displayed are arranged in a matrix. In particular, in the displaysection 100, m scanning lines 12 are provided in such a manner as toextend in the horizontal direction in the drawing, whereas n data lines14 are provided in such a manner as to extend in the vertical directionin the drawing and in such a manner that their electrical isolation fromthe scanning lines 12 is maintained. The pixel circuits 110 are providedat positions corresponding to intersections of the m scanning lines 12and the n data lines 14. For this reason, in this embodiment, the pixelcircuits 110 are arranged in a matrix with m rows (horizontal lines) andn columns (vertical lines).

Here, both m and n are natural numbers. In order to distinguishindividual rows in the scanning lines 12 and the matrix of the pixelcircuits 110, the rows may foe referred to as the 1-st, 2-nd, 3-rd, . .. , (m−1)-th, and m-th row, respectively, in order from the top of thedrawing. Likewise, in order to distinguish individual columns in thedata lines 14 and the matrix of the pixel circuits 110, the columns waybe referred to as the 1-st, 2-nd, 3-rd, . . . , (n−1)-th, and n-thcolumn, respectively, in order from the left side of the drawing.

In this embodiment, an initializing power supply line 16 is providedalong the data line 14 for each column. A potential Vorst, which is areset potential for initialization, is supplied in common to all thepower supply lines 16.

Now, control signals as described below are supplied to theelectro-optical device 10 by the control circuit 5. In particular, acontrol signal Ctr1 for controlling the scanning line driving circuit 20and a control signal Ctr2 for controlling the data line driving circuit30 are supplied to the electro-optical device 10.

In accordance with the control signal Ctr1, the scanning line drivingcircuit 20 generates scanning signals for scanning the scanning lines 12sequentially, row by row, over the period of a frame. Here, the scanningsignals supplied to the 1-st, 2-nd, 3-rd, . . . , (m−1)-th, and m-thscanning lines 12 are denoted by Gwr(1), Gwr(2), Gwr(3), . . . ,Gwr(m−1), and Gwr(m), respectively. Note that, in addition to thescanning signals Gwr(1) to Gwr(m), the scanning line driving circuit 20generates various control signals in synchronization with each of thesescanning signals, row by row, and supplies the signals to the displaysection 100. These control signals are not illustrated in FIG. 2. Theperiod of a frame is a period that is needed for the electro-opticaldevice 10 to display an image corresponding to one cut. For example,when the frequency of a vertical synchronizing signal, which is includedin a synchronizing signal, is 120 Hz, the period of a frame is 8.3milliseconds corresponding to one period of the frequency.

Using the data line driving circuit 30, data signals are supplied forthe pixel circuits 110 located in a row selected by the scanning linedriving circuit 20. Data signals Vd(1), Vd(2), . . . , Vd(n) ofpotential levels in accordance with gray scale data of these pixelcircuits 110 are supplied to the 1-st, 2-nd, . . . , n-th data lines 14by the control circuit 5, respectively.

With reference to FIG. 3, the pixel circuits 110 will now be described.Note that FIG. 3 illustrates the pixel circuit 110 corresponding to onepixel at a position corresponding to an intersection between the i-thscanning line 12 and the j-th data line 14. Here, “i” is a markgenerally indicating a row in which the pixel circuits 110 are arranged,and is an integer from 1 to m. Likewise, “j” is a mark generallyindicating a column in which the pixel circuits 110 are arranged, and isan integer from 1 to n.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the pixel circuit 110 includes p-channelmetal-oxide semiconductor (MOS) transistors 121 to 125, an OLED 130, anda storage capacitor 132. All the pixel circuits 110 have an identicalconfiguration, and therefore the pixel circuit 110 located at the i-throw and the j-th column (hereinafter referred to as the “i-th row andj-th column pixel circuit 110”) will be described as a representativeexample.

In the i-th row and j-th column pixel circuit 110, the transistor 122functions as a write transistor. The gate node of the transistor 122 isconnected to the i-th scanning line 12. One of the drain and sourcenodes of the transistor 122 is connected to the j-th data line 14, andthe other is connected to a gate node g of the transistor 121, to an endof the storage capacitor 132, and to a drain node of the transistor 123.Here, the gate node of the transistor 121 is denoted by “g” in order todistinguish it from other nodes. A scanning signal Gwr(i) is supplied tothe i-th scanning line 12, that is, to the gate node of the transistor122.

The transistor 121 functions as a driving transistor. The source node ofthe transistor 121 is connected to a high potential power supply line160, and the drain node of the transistor 121 is connected to a sourcenode of the transistor 123 and to a source node of the transistor 124.Here, a potential Vel, which is on the high side of a power supply inthe pixel circuit 110, is supplied to the high potential power supplyline 160.

The transistor 123 functions as a compensation transistor. A controlsignal Gcmp(i) is supplied to the gate node of the transistor 123. Thetransistor 124 functions as a light emitting control transistor. Acontrol signal Gel(i) is supplied to the gate node of the transistor124, and the drain node of the transistor 124 is connected to a sourcenode of the transistor 125 and to the anode 51 of the OLED 130.

The transistor 125 functions as an initializing transistor. A controlsignal Gorst(i) is supplied to the gate node of the transistor 125, andthe drain node of the transistor 125 is connected to the initializingpower supply line 16 corresponding to the j-th column and is maintainedat the potential Vorst.

The other end of the storage capacitor 132 is connected to the highpotential power supply line 160. For this reason, the storage capacitor132 holds a source-to-drain voltage of the transistor 121. Note that, asthe storage capacitor 132, a parasitic capacitance at the gate node g ofthe transistor 121 may be used, or a capacitance formed by sandwichingan insulating layer between conductive layers that are different fromeach other may be used.

Since the electro-optical device 10 is formed on a silicon substrate inthis embodiment, the substrate potential of the transistors 121 to 125is defined as the potential Vel.

The anode 51 of the OLED 130 is a pixel electrode provided individuallyfor each pixel circuit 110. In contrast, the cathode 53 of the OLED 130is a common electrode, which is provided common to all the pixelcircuits 110, and is maintained at a potential Vct, which is on the lowside of the power supply in the pixel circuit 110. The OLED 130 is anelement in which an organic EL layer for emitting white light issandwiched between the anode 51 and the cathode 53 having lighttransmittance in the above-mentioned silicon substrate. In addition, acolor filter corresponding to any of red (R), green (G), and blue (B) isoverlaid on an emission side (the cathode 53 side) of the OLED 130. Inthe OLED 130 as such, when a current flows from the anode 51 to thecathode 53, holes injected from the anode 51 and electrons injected fromthe cathode 53 recombine together in the organic EL layer, therebycreating excitons. Thus, white light is emitted. With such a structure,white light emitted at this point is transmitted through the cathode 53on a side opposite to the silicon substrate (anode 51) side, and ischanged in color by the color filter. Thus, the white light is visuallyrecognized on the side of an observer.

Operations of Electro-Optical Device

With reference to FIG. 4, operations of the electro-optical device 10will be described next. FIG. 4 is a timing chart for explainingoperations of components in the electro-optical device 10. Asillustrated in the drawing, the scanning signals Gwr(1) to Gwr(m) aresequentially switched to level L, and the 1-st to m-th scanning lines 12are scanned in turn during the period of one frame in such a manner thatone scanning line is scanned for each horizontal scanning period (H).Operations during one horizontal scanning period (H) are common to thepixel circuits 110 of each row. In view of this, paying attentionparticularly to the i-th row and j-th column pixel circuit 110, theoperations during the scanning period when the i-th scanning line ishorizontally scanned (hereinafter referred to as an “i-th row scanningperiod”) will be described below.

In this embodiment, the i-th row scanning period is broadly divided intoan initialization period denoted by (b), a compensation period denotedby (c), and a writing period denoted by (d), in FIG. 4. Then, after aninterval subsequent to the writing period of (d), a light emittingperiod denoted by (a) commences. After a lapse of the period of oneframe, the i-th row scanning period commences again. Accordingly, interms of temporal order, a cycle of (light emittingperiod)→initialization period→compensation period→writing period→(lightemitting period) is repeated.

Light Emitting Period

For the sake of explanatory convenience, the light emitting period,which is a precondition of the initialization period, will be describedat the beginning. As illustrated in FIG. 4, in the i-th row lightemitting period, the scanning signal Gwr(i) is at level H and thecontrol signal Gel(i) is at level L. Among the control signals Gel(i),Gcmp(i), and Gorst(i), which are logic signals, the control signalGel(i) is at level L and the control signals Gcmp(i) and Gorst(i) are atlevel H. Therefore, in the i-th row and j-th pixel circuit 110illustrated in FIG. 3, the transistor 124 is on whereas the transistors122, 123, and 125 are off. Accordingly, the transistor 121 supplies acurrent Ids in accordance with a gate-to-source voltage Vgs to the OLED130. As described below, in this embodiment, the voltage Vgs during thelight emitting period is level-shifted in accordance with the potentialof a data signal from a threshold voltage of the transistor 121. Thecurrent having a value in accordance with a gray scale level istherefore supplied to the OLED 130 in such a manner that the thresholdvoltage of the transistor 121 is compensated for.

Note that since the i-th row light emitting period is a period duringwhich scanning lines of rows other than the i-th row are horizontallyscanned, the potential of the data line 14 suitably varies. In the i-throw pixel circuit 110, however, since the transistor 122 is off, thepotential variation of the data line 14 is not taken into considerationhere.

Initialization Period

Then, when the i-th row scanning period commences, the initializationperiod of (b) starts at the beginning as a first period. In theinitialization period, the levels of the control signal Gel(i) and thecontrol signal Gorst(i) change to level H and level L, respectively,from those in the light emitting period. Therefore, in the i-th row andj-th pixel circuit 110 illustrated in FIG. 3, the transistor 124 isturned off, whereas the transistor 125 is turned on. This outs off apath through which a current is supplied to the OLED 130, and resets theanode 51 of the OLED 130 to the potential Vorst. Since the OLED 130 hasa structure in which the anode 51 and the cathode 53 sandwich an organiclight emitting layer as described above, there exists a parasiticcapacitance the parasitic capacitance being between the anode 51 and thecathode 53, in parallel to the anode 51 and the cathode 53. When acurrent is flowing through the OLED 130 during the light emittingperiod, an anode 51-to-cathode 53 voltage across the OLED 130 is held bythis capacitance. The held voltage, however, is reset by the transistor125 turning on. For this reason, in this embodiment, when a currentflows again to the OLED 130 in the next light emitting period, thecurrent flow is less likely to be affected by the voltage held by thatcapacitance.

In particular, when the display state changes from a high-luminancestate to a low-luminance state, for example, a high voltage in thehigh-luminance state (in which a large amount of current flows) is heldif a pixel circuit has a configuration that does not allow forresetting. Even if an attempt is made to allow a small amount of currentto flow subsequently, an excessive current flows in reality, making itimpossible to achieve a low-luminance state. In contrast, the potentialof the anode 51 of the OLED 130 is reset by the transistor 125 turningon in this embodiment. This results in enhanced reproducibility of thelow-luminance side. Note that, in this embodiment, the potential Vorstis set such that the difference between the potential Vorst and thepotential Vct of the cathode 53 is less than a light emitting thresholdvoltage of the OLED 130. For this reason, in the initialization period(as well as the compensation period and the writing period, which willbe described below), the OLED 130 is in the off (non-light emitting)state.

Compensation Period

The compensation period of (c) next commences as a second period in thei-th row scanning period. In the compensation period, the levels of thescanning signal Gwr(i) and the control signal Gcmp(i) change to level Lfrom those in the initialization period. In the compensation period,however, a control signal/Gini is at level H under the condition thatthe control signal Gref remains at level H. During the compensationperiod, the transistor 123 is on, and therefore the transistor 121 isdiode-connected. For this reason, a drain current flows through thetransistor 121 to charge the gate node g and the data line 14. Inparticular, a current flows through a path of the high potential powersupply line 160→the transistor 121→the transistor 123→the transistor122→the j-th data line 14. Accordingly, turning on of the transistor 121causes rises in the potentials of the data line 14 and the gate node gthat are in a state of mutual connection. However, assuming that thethreshold voltage of the transistor 121 is |Vth|, the closer the gatenode g approaches a potential (Vel−|Vth|), the less a current is likelyto flow through the above path, and therefore the data line 14 and thegate node g are saturated at a potential (Vel−|Vth|) by the time thecompensation period is completed. Accordingly, the storage capacitor 132holds the threshold voltage |Vth| of the transistor 121 by the time thecompensation period is completed.

Writing Period

Subsequent to the compensation period, the writing period of (d)commences as a third period. During the writing period, the controlsignal Gcmp(i) changes to level H, and therefore the transistor 121 isnot diode-connected. The potential in the path from the j-th data line14 to the gate node g in the i-th row and j-th column pixel circuit 110is maintained at (Vel−|Vth|) owing to the storage capacitor 132.

Light Emitting Period

After an interval for one horizontal scanning period subsequent tocompletion of the writing period for the i-th row, a light emittingperiod commences. In the light emitting period, since the level of thecontrol signal Gel(i) changes to level L as mentioned above, thetransistor 124 is turned on in the i-th row and j-th column pixelcircuit 110. The current having a value in accordance with a gray scalelevel is supplied to the OLED 130 in such a manner that the thresholdvoltage of the transistor 121 is compensated for. Such operations arealso performed in the i-th row pixel circuits 110 other than the i-throw and j-th column pixel circuit 110 temporally in parallel during thei-th row scanning period. Moreover, in reality, such operations in thei-th row are performed in the order of the 1-st, 2-nd, 3-rd, . . . ,(m−1)-th, and m-th row over a period of one frame, and are repeatedframe by frame.

Regarding the pixel circuit 110 described above, in reality, a parasiticcapacitance exists between the data line 14 and the gate node g of thepixel circuit 110. Accordingly, if the range of variations in potentialof the data line 14 is large, the variations spread through theparasitic capacitance to the gate node g, thereby generating so-calledcross talk, unevenness, or the like. This results in a reduction indisplay quality. The effect of the parasitic capacitance markedlyincreases when the pixel circuit 110 is miniaturized. In thisembodiment, however, as described below, a connection portion betweenthe gate electrode of the transistor 121 and another transistor or thestorage capacitor is surrounded on four sides by the initializing powersupply line 16. Even if noise occurs because of variations in thepotential of the data line 14 or other reasons, the noise has noinfluence on the connection portion between the gate electrode of thetransistor 121 and another transistor or the storage capacitor. Thus,variations in the potential of the gate electrode of the transistor 121are controlled. As a result, good display quality is achieved. Detailsof this will be described below.

According to this embodiment, a period longer than a scanning period,for example, two horizontal scanning periods can be allocated as aperiod during which the transistor 125 is on, that is, a reset period ofthe OLED 130. This allows the voltage held by the parasitic capacitanceof the OLED 130 during a light emitting period to be sufficientlyinitialized.

According to this embodiment, in the current Ids supplied to the OLED130 by the transistor 121, the influence of the threshold voltage on thecurrent Ids is offset. Therefore, according to this embodiment, if thethreshold voltage of the transistor 121 varies for every pixel circuit110, the variation is compensated for and a current having a value inaccordance with a gray scale level is supplied to the OLED 130. Displayunevenness that impairs the display uniformity of a display screen istherefore inhibited. As a result, high-quality display may be achieved.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the connection portionbetween the gate electrode of the transistor 121 and another transistoror the storage capacitor is surrounded on four sides by the initializingpower supply line 16. Even if noise occurs because of variations in thepotential of the data line 14 or other reasons, the noise has noinfluence on the connection portion between the gate electrode of thetransistor 121 and another transistor or the storage capacitor, andvariations in the potential of the gate electrode of the transistor 121are controlled. As a result, poor display such as display unevenness maybe reduced.

Structure of Pixel Circuit

With reference to FIG. 5, the structure of the pixel circuit 110 will bedescribed next. FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating a configuration froman interlayer insulating film to a color filter layer of one pixelcircuit 110. Note that a power supply wiring line, relay electrodes, aninterlayer insulating film, the substrate in which transistors areformed, and so forth are laminated under the interlayer insulating film(not illustrated). Additionally, in the drawings referred tohereinafter, the scales of layers, members, and regions are changed sothat each of the layers, members, and regions can be recognized.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, wiring 114 and a relay electrode 41 are formedon an interlayer insulating film underlying these components, and afirst interlayer insulating film 17 is formed in such a manner as tocover the whole surface of these wiring 114 and the relay electrode 41.The relay electrode 41 is an electrode connected via a plurality ofrelay electrodes and contact holes to the source node of the transistor124 in a layer lower than the relay electrode 41.

A reflective layer 115 and a relay electrode 42, which are made of areflective conductive material such as a titanium/aluminum (Ti/Ai)alloy, are formed on the surface of the first interlayer insulating film17. The relay electrode 42 is electrically connected via a contact hole31, which is formed in the first interlayer insulating film 17, to therelay electrode 41. The relay electrode 42 is disposed in an openingprovided in the reflective layer 115 and is surrounded on four sides bythe reflective layer 115. A second interlayer insulating film 18 made ofsilicon oxide (SiO₂) is formed in such a manner as to cover thereflective layer 115 and the relay electrode 42, and further a thirdinterlayer insulating film 19 made of silicon nitride (SiN) is formed insuch a manner as to cover the second interlayer insulating film 18. Aninterlayer adjustment film 15 made of silicon oxide (SiO₂) is formed onthe third interlayer insulating film 19.

Then, after an area on the relay electrode 42 is opened, a lightshielding layer 50 made of titanium nitride (TiN) or a titaniumnitride/aluminum/titanium nitride (TiN/aluminum/TiN) alloy is formed inthe area. The light shielding layer 50 also functions as a contactelectrode with which the relay electrode 42 and an anode 51 made of ITOare electrically connected. In contrast, on the third interlayerinsulating film 19 formed above the reflective layer 115, a firstoptical adjustment layer 116 made of silicon oxide (SiO₂) and a secondoptical adjustment layer 117 made of silicon oxide (SiO₂) are formed.

The anode 51 made of indium tin oxide (ITO) of the OLED 130 is formed onthe above-mentioned light shielding layer 50 and second opticaladjustment layer 117. A pixel separation layer 118 made of siliconnitride (SiN) is formed on the anode 51. Then, an organic functionallayer 52 including a light emitting layer is formed in such a manner asto cover the above-mentioned anode 51 and pixel separation layer 118.The organic functional layer 52 is formed of an organic EL material inwhich holes and electrons combine together and light is emitted. Anorganic EL material is a low-molecular material and emits white light. Acathode 53 made of a magnesium/aluminum (Mg/Al) alloy is formed on theorganic functional layer 52, a sealing layer 54 for protecting theorganic functional layer and the cathode 53 from oxygen or moisture isformed on the cathode 53, and a color filter layer 55 is formed on thesealing layer 54. A green color filter 57, a red color filter 56, and ablue color filter 58 are formed in this color filter layer 55, forexample.

In such a manner, a pixel of this embodiment includes the cathode 53,which is an optical extraction side electrode, on the organic functionallayer 52. The pixel has a resonance structure of adjusting the opticalpath length between the above-mentioned reflective layer 115 and thecathode 53, which is an optical extraction side electrode, by using anadjustment layer such as the first optical adjustment layer 116 and thesecond optical adjustment layer 117.

In the pixel circuit 110 having such a structure as described above, asillustrated in FIG. 5, a gap W is formed between the reflective layer115 and the relay electrode 42. For this reason, it is conceivable thatlight emitted from a light emitting region leaks into the gap W. In thisembodiment, however, the light shielding layer 50 formed of titaniumnitride (TiN) extends from the relay electrode 42 to a location wherethe light shielding layer 50 covers part of the reflective layer 115, sothat the gap W is covered. This reliably prevents light leakage.

It is also conceivable that a light shielding layer is provided in alayer lower than the relay electrode 42 and the reflective layer 115.Unfortunately, if a light shielding layer is provided in such a lowerlayer, a gap is generated between ends of the light shielding layer andan upper layer when seen in a sectional view such as FIG. 5. Thisresults in an increase in gap. Also, if a light shielding layer isprovided in a layer lower than the relay electrode 42 and the reflectivelayer 115, pattern formation is difficult in consideration of relayelectrodes and other wiring. However, in this embodiment, since thecontact electrode of the relay electrode 42 and the anode 51 is used asthe light shielding layer 50, the relay electrode 42 and the lightshielding layer 50 are connected, and a region on the relay electrode 42will be completely covered with the light shielding layer 50. Inaddition, relay electrodes in a lower layer need not be considered, andtherefore pattern formation is easily made.

The position of an edge B on a light emitting region side of the lightshielding layer 50 is determined as follows. Of light that enters fromthe light emitting region, incident light that passes through an edge Aof the light emitting region and reaches an edge C on a reflective layerside of the gap W is configured such that this incident light impingesupon the edge B on the light emitting region side of the light shieldinglayer 50, as indicated by the arrow of a dashed dotted line in FIG. 5.That is, the light shielding layer 50 may be formed so as to be locatedon an optical path of light that enters from the edge A on a relayelectrode side of the organic functional layer 52 towards the edge C onthe reflective layer side of the gap W.

With such a configuration, light that enters at an angle closer to thevertical, than the incident light indicated by the arrow of a dasheddotted line in FIG. 5 does not reach the gap W, and the incident lightindicated by the arrow of a dashed dotted line in FIG. 5 and light thatenters at an angle closer to the horizontal than the incident light areblocked by the light shielding layer 50 and, as a result, do not enterthe gap W.

Note that, although the refractive indexes of the anode 51, the opticaladjustment layers 116 and 117, the second interlayer insulating film 18,and the third interlayer insulating film 19 are nearly equal in thisembodiment, this is not inevitable. Even if their refractive indexes aredifferent, the light shielding layer 50 that blocks light may be formedon the optical path of light that enters from the edge A towards theedge C on the reflective layer side of the gap W. As described above, acontact electrode connecting the relay electrode 42 to the anode 51extends so as to cover the gap formed between the relay electrode 42 andthe reflective layer 115, and this contact electrode is used as thelight shielding layer 50. This reliably prevents light leakage, and thusthe top-emission type electro-optical device 10 that is high in displayquality may be provided.

Moreover, although the reflective layer 115 is formed of the sameconductive material as the relay electrode 42, it is preferable tosupply the potential Vel or the potential Vct to the reflective layer115. In this case, the reflective layer 115 can be operated as a shieldelectrode, enabling noise that jumps into the relay electrode 42 to bereduced. As a result, an accurate current may be supplied to an OLEDelement, and thus display quality may be improved.

Applications and Modifications

The invention is not limited to the above embodiment, applications, andthe like. Various modifications as described below, for example, may bemade. Among examples of modifications described below, one or aplurality of examples arbitrarily selected may be appropriatelycombined.

Control Circuit

In the embodiment, the control circuit 5 that supplies data signals isformed separately from the electro-optical device 10. However, thecontrol circuit 5, together with the scanning line driving circuit 20,the demultiplexer 30, and a level shift circuit 40, may be integrated ina silicon substrate.

Substrate

In the configuration of the embodiment, the electro-optical device 10 isintegrated in a silicon substrate. Another configuration in which thisdevice is integrated in another semiconductor substrate may be used. Inaddition, this device may be formed in a glass substrate or the like byapplication of a polysilicon process. Any of these ways is effective forsuch a configuration that the pixel circuit 110 is miniaturized and, inthe transistor 121, variations in drain current are exponentially largerelative to variations in the gate voltage Vgs.

Control Signal Gcmp(i)

In the embodiment and the like, regarding the i-th row, the controlsignal Gcmp(i) is at level H during the writing period. However, thecontrol signal Gcmp(i) may be at level L. That is, there may be used aconfiguration in which compensation for the threshold caused by thetransistor 123 turning on is performed in parallel with writing to thenode gate g.

Channel Types of Transistors

In the foregoing embodiment, the transistors 121 to 125 in the pixelcircuit 110 are uniformly of the p-channel type. However, they may beuniformly of the n-channel type. The p-channel transistors and then-channel transistors may also be combined appropriately.

Miscellaneous

In the embodiment and the like, the OLED, which is a light emittingelement, has been illustrated as an electro-optical device. However, anyelement that emits light with luminance in accordance with current, suchas an inorganic light emitting diode or a light emitting diode (LED),may be used.

Electronic Apparatus

An electronic apparatus to which the electro-optical device 10 accordingto the embodiment or the like, or an application example, is appliedwill be described next. The electro-optical device 10 is suitable forapplications in which high definition display is desirable withsmall-size pixels. Accordingly, a head-mounted display will be describedby way of example as an electronic apparatus.

FIG. 6 illustrates the external appearance of a head-mounted display,and FIG. 7 illustrates an optical configuration of the head-mounteddisplay. As illustrated in FIG. 6, a head-mounted display 300 includestemples 310, a bridge 320, and lenses 301L and 301R, like typicalglasses in terms of the external appearance. In addition, as illustratedin FIG. 7, the head-mounted display 300 is provided with anelectro-optical device 10L for a left eye and an electro-optical device10R for a right eye near the bridge 320 and on a back side (on a lowerside in the drawing) of the lenses 301L and 301R, respectively. Theimage display surface of the electro-optical device 10L is disposed tothe left of FIG. 7. This causes a display image created by theelectro-optical device 10L to travel through an optical lens 302L in thedirection of 9:00 in the drawing. A half mirror 303L reflects thedisplay image from the electro-optical device 10L in the direction of6:00, and allows light that has entered from the direction of 12:00 topass therethrough. The image display surface of the electro-opticaldevice 10R is disposed to the right of the drawing, which is opposite tothe image display surface of the electro-optical device 10L. This causesa display image created by the electro-optical device 10R to travelthrough an optical lens 302R in the direction of 3:00 in the drawing. Ahalf mirror 303R reflects the display image from the electro-opticaldevice 10L in the direction of 6:00, and allows light that has enteredfrom the direction of 12:00 to pass therethrough.

With this configuration, a person wearing the head-mounted display 300can observe display images created by the electro-optical devices 10Land 10R in a see-through state in which the display images aresuperimposed over the outside scene. When, in the head-mounted display300, one of both eyes' images with a parallax, that is, an image for aleft eye is displayed on the electro-optical device 10L and the other,that is, an image for a right eye is displayed on the electro-opticaldevice 10R, a person wearing the head-mounted display 300 can perceive adisplayed image as if this image had depth and a cubic effect (threedimensional (3D) display).

Note that the electro-optical device 10 is applicable to an electronicview finder in a video camera, an interchangeable lens digital camera,and the like, in addition to the head-mounted display 300.

The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2012-111568,filed May 15, 2012 is expressly incorporated by reference herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electro-optical device comprising: areflective layer; a light emitting element including a light emittinglayer formed between an anode and a cathode; a driving transistorconfigured to control a current flowing through the light emittingelement; a relay electrode in a same layer as the reflective layer thatis included in a current path from the driving transistor to the anodeand formed with a gap between the relay electrode and the reflectivelayer; and a contact electrode directly electrically connecting therelay electrode and the anode that is formed as a light shielding layerthat blocks light entering the gap, the contact electrode being in adifferent layer than the anode.
 2. The electro-optical device accordingto claim 1, wherein the light shielding layer is formed so as to belocated on an optical path of light that enters from an edge of thelight emitting layer toward the edge of the gap.
 3. The electro-opticaldevice according to claim 1, wherein the reflective layer is formed of asame conductive material as the relay electrode, and a given potentialis supplied to the reflective layer.
 4. The electro-optical deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the reflective layer includes an opening,the relay electrode is formed in the opening, and the reflective layersurrounds the relay electrode on four sides.
 5. The electro-opticaldevice according to claim 1, further comprising: an insulating layerthat covers the reflective layer and the relay electrode; and a holeprovided in the insulating film through which the contact electrode isconnected to the relay electrode.
 6. The electro-optical deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein at least part of the anode is provided incontact with the contact electrode.
 7. The electro-optical deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the light shielding layer is formed oftitanium nitride (TiN) or a titanium nitride/aluminum/titanium nitride(TiN/aluminum/TiN) alloy.
 8. The electro-optical device according toclaim 1, wherein the reflective layer is made of a titanium/aluminum(Ti/Al) alloy.
 9. An electro-optical device comprising: a reflectivelayer; alight emitting element including a light emitting layer formedbetween a first electrode and a second electrode; a transistorelectrically connected to the first electrode; a relay electrode formedin a same layer as the reflective layer that is included in a currentpath from the transistor to the first electrode and formed with a gapbetween the relay electrode and the reflective layer; and a contactelectrode electrically connecting the relay electrode and the firstelectrode that is formed as a light shielding layer that blocks lightentering the gap, the contact electrode being in a different layer thanthe first electrode.
 10. An electronic apparatus comprising theelectro-optical device according to claim
 1. 11. An electronic apparatuscomprising the electro-optical device according to claim
 2. 12. Anelectronic apparatus comprising the electro-optical device according toclaim
 3. 13. An electronic apparatus comprising the electro-opticaldevice according to claim
 4. 14. An electronic apparatus comprising theelectro-optical device according to claim
 5. 15. An electronic apparatuscomprising the electro-optical device according to claim
 6. 16. Anelectronic apparatus comprising the electro-optical device according toclaim
 7. 17. An electronic apparatus comprising the electro-opticaldevice according to claim
 8. 18. An electronic apparatus comprising theelectro-optical device according to claim
 9. 19. An electro-opticaldevice comprising: a reflective layer; a light emitting elementincluding a light emitting layer formed between a first electrode and asecond electrode; a transistor electrically connected to the firstelectrode; a relay electrode in a same layer as the reflective layerthat is included in a current path from the transistor to the firstelectrode and formed with a gap between the relay electrode and thereflective layer; and a contact electrode that is in direct physicalcontact with the relay electrode, electrically connects the relayelectrode and the first electrode, and is formed as alight shieldinglayer that blocks light entering the gap, the contact electrode being ina different layer than the first electrode.
 20. An electronic apparatuscomprising the electro-optical device according to claim 19.